Owen scores 'that' goal |
Now Chelsea new-boy Andriy Shevchenko has made his American wife happy by moving to England, he can get on with what he does best.
The Ukrainian striker, along with Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Henry and the all-singing, all-dancing Peter Crouch will be hoping to inject a bit of magic into the World Cup, which gets under way on 9 June.
But they will have to produce something truly spectacular to eclipse the greatest goals ever scored in the tournament, as compiled for the BBC's World Cup Goals Crazy programme.
We have listed the 10 below, in the order they were rated, but you can use the voting from on the right to make up your own minds after watching the video footage (UK users only).
1. Carlos Alberto: Brazil v Italy, 1970
One of the best World Cup games, one of the best goals. Carlos Alberto provided the bullet finish from Pele's delightful lay-off, in an almost telepathic move involving nine players.
2. Maradona: Argentina v England, 1986
It was the 'Hand of God' that excited the headline writers, but Maradona's second goal was a joy to behold. Picking up the ball on half-way, he ghosted past several bewildered England players before dummying Shilton and slotting home.
3. Said Owairan: Saudi Arabia v Belgium, 1994
One of the great individual goals. With five minutes on the clock, Said picked up the ball deep inside his own half and ran. And he kept on running, leaving a trail of flailing Belgians in his wake before coolly tucking the ball away.
4. Lothar Matthaus: Germany v Yugoslavia, 1990
The Germans took half an hour to get off the mark, but when the goal came it was well worth waiting for as skipper Matthaus turned on to Stefan Reuter's pass and rifled the ball home from 20 yards.
5. Michael Owen: England v Argentina, 1998
This slight 18-year-old bamboozled the Argentine defence as he surged from the half-way line, side-stepping a couple of desperate lunges along the way, and cracked in an unstoppable shot from a tricky angle.
6. Dennis Bergkamp: Holland v Argentina, 1998
The Dutchman deftly controlled Frank de Boer's fabulous 50-yard pass, swivelled past his marker and volleyed in - all in the blink of an eye. Oh, and the last-minute strike booked Holland a place in the semi-finals.
7. Roberto Baggio: Italy v Czechoslovakia, 1990
The youngster picked up the ball on the half-way line, played a one-two, dribbled past two defenders, cut in from the left and drilled past Jan Stejskal in the Czech goal to send the Italian fans into raptures.
8. Josimar: Brazil v Northern Ireland, 1986
Pat Jennings was serenaded by a Mexican band to mark his last World Cup but it was Josimar who called the tune in this match with a wonderful strike from a seemingly impossible angle.
9. Johan Cruyff: Holland v Brazil, 1974
Total football from the Dutch as man-of-the-tournament Cruyff finished off a superb one-touch move with a delicate volley to leave the Brazilians' World Cup hopes in tatters.
10. Pele: Brazil v Czechoslovakia, 1970
He famously nearly scored from a long shot inside his own half and went one better with the old-one two, chesting down a long-ball and firing home with his trusty right foot.